Flood damage could close restaurant

Mar 10 2010 By Emma Heseltine

Flooding in High Street, Addlestone

HOMES and businesses are suffering from flood damage because roads are not draining properly after heavy rainfall.

Runnymede councillor David Parr (Con) who owns a building in High Street where the Golden House Chinese takeaway has been trading for more than 40 years, says that the outlet may be forced to close if flooded pavements from a sunken manhole cover keep customers away.

And residents in Lyne Lane say they are often under water after heavy drain, and that drainage is not good enough across Runnymede's roads.

Mr Parr said: "This is a business that has been in Addlestone town centre since 1968 and it's under threat because of a sunken manhole cover, which is causing the road to flood. Customers don't want to have to wade through water and it's being splashed up into the entrance of the shop and damaging the floor area."

Surrey County Council has admitted that it has few written records of drainage systems across the county, as many are in the heads of engineers who have long since retired. This is the case in Lyne Lane, which is often under water with residents struggling to get out of their front gates after heavy rainfall.

June Williams, 61, who lives in Lyne Lane, said: "When it's been raining, you can't even get out of your driveway, and you certainly don't enjoy driving through it. It's dangerous just driving along the road, and I wouldn't be surprised to hear of any accidents happening in the wet."

Surrey County Council's highways manager Nick Healey said that Lyne Lane was an example of a road where they were not sure where the drainage system went.

He said: "The trouble with somewhere like that is if we were to flush the system through, we don't know where it would come out and we can't dump water on private land."

Mr Parr said he is looking into whether he can take legal action against Surrey County Council for the cost of damage to his building.